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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28227603">Finding Winter Wonderland</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/KandiSheek/pseuds/KandiSheek'>KandiSheek</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Baking, Banter, Bucky Barnes &amp; Steve Rogers Friendship, Christmas, Christmas Cookies, Christmas Morning, Christmas Party, Christmas in the Forties, Domestic Fluff, Established Bucky Barnes/Tony Stark, Good Intentions, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Tony Stark Has A Heart, mcuchristmasexchange2020</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 15:55:31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,448</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28227603</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/KandiSheek/pseuds/KandiSheek</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When Tony finds out about Bucky's modest experiences with Christmas growing up he sets out to show him exactly how they do it in the future.</p><p>...Which would be great if he knew how to actually do that.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>150</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>MCU Christmas Exchange, Tony Stark winter soldier</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Finding Winter Wonderland</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/27dragons/gifts">27dragons</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I'm posting this a lot later in the day than I hoped to, but I got it done, yay! I hope you can forgive me for taking a little longer than planned, dear giftee &lt;3</p><p>This was written for the MCU Christmas Exchange 2020. I hope you enjoy what I came up with, 27dragons, I had a lot of fun with your prompt! Thanks to everyone who reads this and Merry Christmas!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“– and the one at Mason's, you always wanted to look at it. Had to haul your ass halfway around the goddamn world.“</p><p>“It was just up the street, you lazy –“</p><p>“Hey there, fellas! What's good?” Tony plopped down on the couch next to Bucky, pressing a kiss to his cheek before he settled in with his plate of cookies. “Hope I'm not interrupting grandpa time.”</p><p>“Hello to you too, Tony,” Steve said long-sufferingly while Bucky just grinned, pulling him into a proper kiss.</p><p>“Hey there. You get your thingy done?”</p><p>Tony glared at him to hide the smile tugging at his lips. “You know damn well what I call my projects, Barnes.”</p><p>“I'm sorry? I can't hear you over my grandpa brain.” Bucky pulled Tony against his side, rubbing his neck with just the right amount of pressure and – fuck, why had Tony pretended to be mad again?</p><p>“Whatever,” he mumbled, dropping his head to lean into the massage and Bucky laughed, digging his fingers in just right to make Tony groan.</p><p>“You two need a room?” Steve asked, only half joking, and Tony waved him off.</p><p>“I'm good. Carry on.”</p><p>Bucky hummed, taking the plate of cookies from Tony before it could slide off his lap and placing it down on the table. “We were just talking about Christmas in the forties.”</p><p>“Oh?” Tony asked without raising his head and Steve sighed.</p><p>“Everyone has a tree these days. We used to go to the local hardware store to look at one.”</p><p>“Shut up. Really?”</p><p>“Yeah.” Bucky did something truly magical with his fingers that made Tony melt into a puddle in his lap. “Whoops. You okay there, doll?”</p><p>“M'good, go on,” Tony slurred and Steve laughed, the couch creaking as he shifted his weight.</p><p>“Anyway, the tree, right? We used to go look at it after school, all the kids from our class. Sometimes the owner would hand out candy the day before Christmas, little pieces of toffy.”</p><p>“The chocolate ones. So good,” Bucky moaned and Tony dropped his head fully into his lap, lying down so he could stretch out on the couch.</p><p>“I take it you didn't have much candy growing up.”</p><p>Steve snorted. “You could say that.”</p><p>“So what did you get for Christmas? Wool socks?”</p><p>Bucky laughed, ruffling his hair. “Wool was kinda expensive. My mom made them from flour sacks.”</p><p>“You're kidding,” Tony said and Steve chuckled.</p><p>“Nah. We had wool socks for the stockings though. Had to pick the biggest one so Santa could actually fit something in there, you know?”</p><p>“What did you get in your stockings?” Tony asked and Bucky smiled, looking off into the distance.</p><p>“An orange in the toe and a –“</p><p>“– yellow punch bag balloon on top,” Steve finished for him, rolling his eyes. “He wouldn't shut up about it.”</p><p>“You're just mad cause I wouldn't let you play with it.”</p><p>“I <em>always</em> let you play with my toys –“</p><p>“You kept your firecrackers to yourself all the time, you assho–”</p><p>“Okay, okay,” Tony chuckled, poking Bucky in the ribs. “Cool the testosterone.”</p><p>“Sorry.” Bucky leaned down to press a kiss to Tony's cheek. “But seriously, Steve, you were weird about your toys too.”</p><p>Steve glared at Bucky. “At least I never wanted to kidnap Santa to get them.”</p><p>Tony snorted. “What?”</p><p>“You were <em>so</em> on board with that, you hypocrite,” Bucky said before he looked down at Tony, giving him a fond smile. “Anyway, how was your day?”</p><p>Tony smirked. “Oh no, you're not getting out of this one. You kidnapped Santa?”</p><p>Bucky sighed heavily. “Tried to.”</p><p>“Worst Christmas ever,” Steve mumbled and Bucky gave him the finger before he turned back to Tony.</p><p>“We stayed up all night on the fire escape. I brought some rope so we could hold him down and take his presents.”</p><p>Tony laughed. “Holy shit! You greedy bastards!”</p><p>“Yeah, it didn't work out so well.” Bucky chuckled. “We just sat out there shivering for a couple hours before Steve saw his mom through the window, packing up his presents. Turns out Santa's not real and both of us spent Christmas in bed with a massive cold.”</p><p>“Now that's instant karma,” Tony laughed and Bucky pinched his cheek.</p><p>“Like you've never done anything stupid.”</p><p>Tony shrugged. “I tried to build a robot reindeer.”</p><p>“No way, really?”</p><p>“Emphasis on <em>tried</em>.” Tony grinned, thinking back to Jarvis' face when he'd seen it. “Couldn't get it to fly but it walked a couple steps before it keeled over.”</p><p>“Well, you got around to making things fly eventually,” Bucky said and Tony smiled.</p><p>“That I did.”</p><p>He only looked away from Bucky's fond gaze when Steve yawned, stretching his arms over his head before he got off the couch. “Think I'm gonna hit the hay. Spar tomorrow?”</p><p>“You betcha,” Bucky said, bumping his fist against Steve's, and Tony wrinkled his nose.</p><p>“I seriously regret teaching you that.”</p><p>“What? We're just really great bros, bro,” Steve said innocently and Tony shuddered.</p><p>“Okay, no. Out. Think about what you've done.”</p><p>Steve grinned, saluting them lazily before he left the room. He'd barely rounded the corner before Bucky pulled Tony up and into his lap, giving him a toe-curling kiss.</p><p>“Mmh, I missed you today,” he mumbled against Tony's lips and Tony smirked, wrapping his arms around Bucky's neck.</p><p>“Yeah? Wanna show me how much?”</p><p>“Later.” In spite of his words Bucky kissed him again, coaxing Tony's mouth open with his tongue, and Tony lost himself in it for a long moment, shivering when their lips caught on each other as they pulled apart.</p><p>“You sure you wanna wait? You could bend me right over the couch and –”</p><p>“You haven't had dinner yet.”</p><p>Tony rolled his eyes but Bucky still got up, pulling Tony to his feet to lead him into the kitchen. He sat down on a stool as Bucky started pulling sandwich ingredients from the fridge. Which reminded him... “Was Christmas dinner different back then? What did you usually have?”</p><p>Bucky hummed. “Potatoes, cabbage and pie.” Tony must've made a face because Bucky laughed. “I know, it's not much, but my mom always made a lot of it. We usually had soup in the days leading up to it so we could afford a big Christmas dinner.”</p><p>Tony shook his head. “I can't even imagine.”</p><p>“Course you can't, Mr billionaire,” Bucky said, his eyes twinkling with humor. Tony smirked.</p><p>“You forgot handsome genius.”</p><p>“Did I?” Bucky asked, laughing when Tony leaned over the table to swat at his ass. “I always pitched in back then. Easy work around Christmas.”</p><p>“Oh? What did you do, shovel snow?”</p><p>“Wrapped packages at Macy's. Fourteen dollars a week.” Bucky handed him the sandwich and Tony dug in, giving an appreciative hum. Bucky smiled. “There was a great bunch working in the basements those days. Engineers, teachers, lawyers. No one had any money. But at least a nickle was a nickle back then.”</p><p>“Wha' di' a niffle bu'?” Tony asked with his mouth full and Bucky gave him an admonishing look that made Tony swallow and give him a sheepish grin. “Sorry. What did a nickle buy?”</p><p>“An apple. They sold them on every street corner.” He sighed. “A dollar used to go a long way, you know.”</p><p>Tony didn't know. “Yeah. Inflation is crazy.”</p><p>“Very.” Bucky sat down next to him, stealing a bite of Tony's sandwich. “What about you? You used to go home for the holidays, right? Or did you stay at MIT?”</p><p>Tony chuckled wryly. “No, I went home. Not much to tell there.”</p><p>“Really?” Bucky asked, his eyes intent like he was looking right through him and Tony closed his eyes, shaking his head.</p><p>“You know. Big tree, fancy dinner, tons of presents, the whole nine yards.” Tony shrugged. “They didn't spare any expenses. Usually had a lot of people over too.”</p><p>Bucky looked at him for a long moment before his face softened. “You don't like Christmas all that much, do you?”</p><p>Tony looked up at him, honestly surprised, before he scoffed. “Yeah, I mean. I almost got blown up on Christmas four years ago, so.” Bucky's face shuttered and Tony smiled despite himself, leaning over to press a kiss to Bucky's pursed lips. “You can't punch the past, freezer pop. We've been over this.”</p><p>The corner of Bucky's mouth twitched. “That's usually my line.”</p><p>“Well, look at us functional folk. Hooray for therapy.” Bucky snorted and Tony couldn't help but grin. “Come on. Let's grab some eggnog and go to bed. We'll do Christmas our way.”</p><p>“Oh yeah?” Tony felt his stomach flip at the devious glint in Bucky's eyes. “And what's that?”</p><p>Tony smirked. “It includes a lot less clothes, that's for sure.”</p><p>“Alright then,” Bucky said, grabbing Tony's hand and pulling him along to the bedroom. “We'll make up the rules as we go.”</p><p> </p><p>It wasn't until they were lying in bed, Tony on his back with Bucky snoring against his chest, that he had the idea. And as with all ideas that one had at three in the morning...</p><p>He really should've thought it through.</p><p> </p><p>On the day before Christmas Tony woke up giddy with excitement. Bucky was already out and about as he was wont to do and Tony knew he wouldn't be back before nightfall, which gave him ample time to prepare.</p><p>“Good morning, Sir. Your first shipments have arrived and are awaiting your signature in the lobby. Mr Santoli just confirmed the final changes to catering and Ms Potts has sent out all of the relevant invitations.”</p><p>“Excellent.” Tony practically skipped into the shower, turning the water as hot as he could stand without burning himself. “Anyone cancel so far?”</p><p>“Only Dr Banner. He is not in the States right now.”</p><p>“Figures.”</p><p>“Shall I tell the staff to start installing the tree?”</p><p>“Huh? Oh, yeah, let 'em at it,” Tony said, washing his hair as quickly as possible. He'd probably take another shower before tonight anyway. “Is the fake snow here yet?”</p><p>“Ready to be distributed, Sir.”</p><p>“Excellent.” Tony finished up and toweled off in record time, throwing on a suit and grabbing his phone on his way to the elevator. “Is Bucky with Steve?”</p><p>“Indeed, Sir. Mr Wilson is with them too.”</p><p>“Alright. Call Sam and tell him to stall them until 5pm if he can. Actually no, make it an order.”</p><p>“Very well, Sir.”</p><p>Tony arrived in the lobby to find Pepper already standing there, talking to one of the delivery guys. He donned his best business smile as he joined them, cutting in with a sweeping gesture. “Good morning, sunshines! You got a package for me? I hope it's a big one.”</p><p>He could feel Pepper's judgmental gaze on his back the entire time that he signed off on the delivery before he turned to her and saw it in full force. “What? Don't tell me you're gonna be grinching it up in here.”</p><p>Pepper glared at him for a moment longer before she sighed. “I wish I could say I'm surprised but you've done crazier things in the past than throw a surprise Christmas party.”</p><p>“Glad we agree.” Tony led her towards the common floor where the party would take place, nodding in satisfaction at the twenty foot tall Christmas tree being hoisted up right in the middle. When he looked back at Pepper she had her face in her hands. “What?”</p><p>“You're a ridiculous man but sometimes I forget just how ridiculous.”</p><p>Tony frowned. “Is this still about the rabbit? I told you I don't –“</p><p>“No, it's –” she cut herself off to take a deep breath before she gave him a tired look. “Why <em>this</em> all of a sudden? You don't even like Christmas. Why are you –“ She paused when he averted his eyes. “Oh. It's for Bucky, isn't it?”</p><p>Tony shuffled his feet. “Maybe.”</p><p>“Tony,” she sighed, putting a hand on his shoulder. “You know that man loves you, right? Big gestures aren't always –“</p><p>“He used to get an <em>orange</em> for Christmas,” Tony blurted, his face feeling a little hot under her gaze. “I just want...” He trailed off, swallowing heavily. “He should have everything, you know? Now that he can. I can give him that.”</p><p>Pepper eyed him silently for a long moment before she shook her head, letting him go. “Alright. I'll make sure the food gets here on time.”</p><p>“Thank you,” he said with feeling and she smiled.</p><p>“Will that be all, Mr Stark?”</p><p>“That'll be all, Ms Potts.” He watched her walk away with a smile before he shook himself out of it, marching off to look over the next delivery.</p><p>He had a lot of work to do.</p><p> </p><p>Tony grinned, raising his chin with a cocky smirk when Sam wolf whistled as soon as he, Bucky and Steve walked into the lobby. “Looking sharp, Stark.”</p><p>“You know it.” He smiled at Bucky who was giving him a thorough up and down, trying not to preen too obviously under his gaze. “Hey there, Buckster.”</p><p>“Hey, honey,” Bucky said, his voice as dark as his eyes when he finally met Tony's with an appreciative grin. “What's the occasion?”</p><p>“You'll see.” Tony grabbed Bucky's hand, waving the other two along into the elevator. “Let's go. The peanut gallery's invited.”</p><p>“Oh?” Bucky only looked disappointed for a split second before his expression turned curious. “Now I'm intrigued.”</p><p>“As you should be. Come on.”</p><p>Tony was practically bouncing on his toes the entire elevator ride up, casting side eyed glances at Bucky who caught every single one of them with a raised eyebrow. By the time the elevator stopped Tony couldn't stop himself from grinning.</p><p>“Alright, folks! Be prepared to be wowed!”</p><p>The doors opened and Tony stepped into the room, turning around to greet them with his arms spread wide like a circus director.</p><p>“Welcome to Winter Wonderland!”</p><p>All of their mouths dropped open but Sam recovered first, face twisting into a huge grin as he walked forward to look around with almost childlike wonder. “Holy <em>shit</em>, Tony! What the fuck?”</p><p>Tony laughed, letting his eyes wander around the almost unrecognizable common room. It was decked out in all sorts of Christmas decorations, ten foot tall gingerbread men, reindeer statues made of ice and a fully functioning sled that Clint appeared to be riding in at the moment, balancing two glasses of eggnog in each hand. There was food aplenty, from lavish cakes to stuffed turkey and ham, puddings and stews, even Tony's requested cabbage potatoes. Loud music was blasting from behind the bar where bartenders dressed as elves handed out extravagant drinks with sugar straws that looked like candy canes.</p><p>And of course there was the tree, glittering red, white and gold in the center of the room. The amount of presents underneath looked like someone had raided a Toys'R'Us and several outlet malls, all of them wrapped in a tastefully coordinated color scheme that complimented the rest of the room. A few of the guests were already there and Tony waved at Natasha across the room, grinning when she toasted him with her drink.</p><p>“Alright boys, have fun,” Tony said jovially, waving an arm at the room. “Take a present it you want. They're free for all, except for the ones that have names on them.”</p><p>Sam laughed, clapping him on the shoulder. “Thanks, man. I'm gonna go do that. Merry Christmas!”</p><p>“Merry Christmas!” Tony called after him before he turned back to Bucky and Steve who were both looking a little dazed. “Come on, fellas! Live a little! It's Christmas!”</p><p>Steve shook himself out of it first, giving Tony a small smile as he got off the elevator. “This is really neat, Tony. Thank you so much.”</p><p>“Hey, no problem. Fun for the whole family, right? Enjoy yourself.”</p><p>Steve grinned. “So do we add our own presents to the pile? I can go grab them from upstairs.”</p><p>“Sure, if you want.”</p><p>Steve gave him a thumbs up and went right back into the elevator, practically kicking Bucky out. Which was when Tony realized that Bucky had yet to say anything about all this. Shit.</p><p>He watched with his heart in his throat as Bucky looked around the room, his expression utterly unreadable. But just when Tony felt a sliver of apprehension run down his spine Bucky seemed to come back to his senses, blinking up at the huge Christmas tree.</p><p>“This is... wow,” Bucky said slowly and Tony grinned at him.</p><p>“Right? Check out the buffet, I had them make a couple of the greatest hits from the forties. You'll love them!”</p><p>“I'm sure I will,” Bucky said with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. Tony's stomach dropped.</p><p>“What's wrong?”</p><p>“Nothing,” Bucky said a little too brightly, not quite looking at him, and something in Tony's brain clicked.</p><p>“You hate this.”</p><p>“What? No!” Bucky grabbed his hand, giving it a comforting squeeze. “I'm just a little... overwhelmed. That's all. Thanks for doing all this for us.”</p><p>“Sure, no problem,” Tony said numbly and Bucky pressed a kiss to his lips before he started dragging Tony along to the buffet table. He could see the smile slip off Bucky's face right as he turned his head and all of a sudden the music was way too loud in his ears, the decorations garish and ugly, his stomach curdling with every step they took –</p><p>Tony stopped, their arms pulling taut before Bucky turned back towards him with a raised eyebrow that quickly melted into a concerned frown. “Hey, what's wrong?”</p><p>“We should get out of here,” Tony blurted and Bucky's other eyebrow joined the first, his mouth dropping open.</p><p>“What? The party just started, we can't just –“</p><p>“Come on. I don't want to be here and you clearly don't either, let's just... go upstairs.”</p><p>Bucky's brow furrowed. “But you... you're the host, you can't just –“</p><p>“They can entertain themselves.” As if to prove his point there was a burst of laughter from the kitchen right before the sound of smashing glass rang out through the room. Thor could keep them busy for all he cared. “Please. I think I... I just want to have a quiet evening with you. Okay?”</p><p>Bucky stared at him for a moment longer before he nodded, squeezing Tony's hand. “Okay.”</p><p>They walked to the elevator in silence. If anyone noticed they were leaving no one bothered them about it, probably thanks to the commotion Clint and Sam were making over in the sled. Tony couldn't stop himself from pulling Bucky into a hug as soon as they were in the penthouse, feeling something in him relax when Bucky's arms wrapped around his shoulders.</p><p>“I'm sorry,” he said quietly and Bucky's grip on him tightened, his metal hand coming up to stroke Tony's hair.</p><p>“You did nothing wrong, doll. I appreciate it, really.”</p><p>“You hate the party,” Tony said and Bucky sighed, his chin coming down to rest on top of Tony's head.</p><p>“Yeah. I'm sorry.”</p><p>“No, it's okay.” Tony swallowed heavily. “It's just... I mean, growing up Christmas was always like this. I thought I could show you my version of it, include some of the things you like, and maybe...”</p><p>“It's not really <em>your</em> version though, is it? You hated this as a child,” Bucky said all too knowingly and Tony sighed, shaking his head.</p><p>“Yeah. I thought I could... I don't know what I was thinking honestly.”</p><p>“It's okay,” Bucky said as Tony tucked his face in the crook of his neck. “I don't – we don't need all that to have a good Christmas, right? We just need each other.”</p><p>“Right,” Tony said, a little choked up as Bucky rubbed circles into his back, slowly but surely getting rid of the tension in his shoulders.</p><p>“We'll get it right next year.”</p><p>Tony felt his chest fill with warmth at the implication that Bucky was already making plans for them in a year even though they'd only been together for a couple months. God, he loved that man. “Yeah. Definitely.”</p><p>They stood in silence for a long moment until Bucky pulled away just enough to pick Tony up and deposit him on the couch. Tony was too surprised to even protest before Bucky was already walking into the kitchen. “Hey! I'm not a damsel in distress, you ass!”</p><p>“You want popcorn or chips?” Bucky called back and Tony rolled his eyes, trying to fight the smile that was threatening to spread on his face.</p><p>“Both. Do we have ice cream?”</p><p>The settled in front of the TV with an armload of snacks, sharing them amongst each other as they put on movie after movie. Tony was barely watching the screen, his eyes half-lidded as he leaned against Bucky's chest, just enjoying his warm presence against his side. He wasn't sure how much time had passed when he suddenly felt a shift in gravity as Bucky lifted him up and carried him to bed.</p><p>“'M not a damsel,” he slurred, already half-asleep, humming when he felt Bucky press a kiss to his temple as they settled under the covers.</p><p>“Good night, sweetheart.”</p><p> </p><p>Tony didn't know exactly what woke him up until his eyes were already open, blinking blearily against the sunlight coming in through the window. He sat up with a groan, feeling his back creak in protest at the motion. He always denied the noise later, but when the timing was right he would shamelessly exploit the creaking as an excuse to get a massage from Bucky's magic hands.</p><p>Speaking of which –</p><p>“Buck?” he called out croakily, swallowing a few times to clear his throat. “Honey? You in the shower?”</p><p>“Kitchen!” came the answer and Tony heaved himself out of bed with enormous effort, trudging into the bathroom to take care of his business. He splashed cold water on his face before he shuffled into the living room, his bare feet slapping against the floor with every step.</p><p>Through the haze of sleep it took him a moment to notice the green blob in his vision. He squinted, rubbing a hand across his face before he stopped in the middle of the room, staring at the – was that –</p><p>“Why is there a tree in my home?” he mumbled, hearing a snort from the kitchen before Bucky came out holding a cup of coffee.</p><p>“Merry Christmas, sweetheart,” he said, pushing the cup into Tony's hands before he pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Wake up, will you? We've got work to do.”</p><p>“Isn't Christmas like... not work?” Tony asked petulantly, perking up as soon as he took his first sip. Then gulped down the entire cup in one go. “Fuck. That's good.”</p><p>“I put some cinnamon in there,” Bucky called out from the kitchen and as the pre-coffee drowsiness slowly faded from his mind Tony finally realized what had woken him up in the first place.</p><p>“Something smells awesome.”</p><p>“You better appreciate it,” Bucky said, popping his head out through the doorway. Tony noticed a streak of batter on his chin. “I've been slaving over these for hours.”</p><p>“What are you making?” Tony asked but Bucky only raised an eyebrow, pointing at the green monstrosity to Tony's left.</p><p>“Go make yourself useful and put that thing up. I'll join you in a minute.”</p><p>Tony eyed the tree, its twisted and bent branches that were squashed flat in some places, completely torn off in others. It was scruffy at best, huge patches missing so that it looked more like the skeleton of a tree than actual Christmas decoration. “That tree is, uh... unique.”</p><p>“It's the best I could find on short notice.” Bucky nodded at a box on the floor. “Ornaments too. Gotta hang them up if you want breakfast.”</p><p>Tony groaned. “I just got up and you want me to <em>work?”</em></p><p>“Cry louder, wimp,” Bucky deadpanned and Tony demonstratively wailed. “Oh, shut up. Be grateful I even got you a tree.”</p><p>“It's ugly as fuck,” Tony said, then cowered under Bucky's glare. “I mean. I love it.”</p><p>“Yeah, that's what I thought,” Bucky grumbled and Tony hid a smile as he rifled through the box, pulling out all the mismatched Christmas ornaments. He wasn't sure there were two of the same anything in it. “I plucked some from your big tree. Hope you don't mind.”</p><p>“No, not at all,” Tony said quietly, looking up at the scruffy tree. He startled when arms wrapped around him from behind and Bucky pressed a kiss to his neck, pulling him against his chest.</p><p>“Come on. Let's spruce it up a bit, shall we?”</p><p>Tony grinned, turning around for a proper kiss that left both of them panting when they finally pulled away.</p><p>“Yeah. Let's.”</p><p>They decorated the tree together, squabbling over the placement before they both realized it was pointless and just ended up putting things wherever. Bucky lifted Tony onto his shoulders to put the big angel figure – just as ugly as the tree – on top before they both took a step back and admired their work.</p><p>“It's, uh...” Bucky was clearly struggling to find the words so Tony chimed in.</p><p>“Horrible? Nightmare fuel? A sin against humanity?”</p><p>Bucky snorted. “It's a complete fucking disaster.”</p><p>“Suits us just fine then, huh?” Tony smiled as Bucky wrapped an arm around him, his lips only inches from Tony's when an alarm from the kitchen made them both freeze.</p><p>“Shit! My cookies!”</p><p>“Save our sustenance,” Tony called after him as Bucky hurried into the kitchen, returning a few minutes later with a huge plate of misshapen cookies, some of them topped with sprinkles, some not. At Tony's questioning look Bucky shrugged. “Sam gave me his leftovers. I didn't care enough to buy more sprinkles.”</p><p>“They're perfect,” Tony said seriously and Bucky smiled, placing the plate down on the floor as Tony grabbed two pillows from the couch and dropped them on either side of it. They sat down in front of their shitty tree, sharing piping hot cookies and taking in the ugly ornaments as JARVIS played Frank Sinatra in the background.</p><p>“I got you a present but it's downstairs,” Tony said and Bucky hummed, grabbing another cookie.</p><p>“Later. I can't be bothered to get up right now.”</p><p>Tony snorted. “Honestly same.”</p><p>Bucky turned to look at him and Tony felt his chest thrum with warmth when Bucky reached out and intertwined their fingers, pulling Tony's hand up to press a kiss to it.</p><p>“Merry Christmas, Tony.”</p><p>Tony smiled, leaning in for a proper kiss before he put his head on Bucky's shoulder and closed his eyes, enjoying the way Bucky's breath rustled his hair.</p><p>“Yeah. Merry Christmas, Bucky.”</p>
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